The present invention relates to exercise methods and apparatus and more particularly, to exercise equipment that facilitates elliptical exercise motion.
Exercise equipment has been designed to facilitate a variety of exercise motions. For example, treadmills allow a person to walk or run in place; stepper machines allow a person to climb in place; bicycle machines allow a person to pedal in place; and other machines allow a person to skate and/or stride in place. Yet another type of exercise equipment has been designed to facilitate relatively more complicated exercise motions and/or to more closely approximate walking and/or running motions. Such equipment typically uses some sort of linkage assembly to convert a relatively simple motion, such as circular, into a relatively more complex motion, such as elliptical. Exercise equipment has also been designed to facilitate total body exercise. For example, reciprocating cables or pivoting arm poles have been used on many of the foregoing types of exercise equipment to facilitate contemporaneous upper body and lower body exercise. Despite many such advances in the art, room for improvement remains.
The present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for linking circular motion to relatively more complex, generally elliptical motion. On a preferred embodiment, for example, a linear connector link has a first portion rotatably connected to a crank; a second portion rotatably connected to a first rocker link; and a lower end rotatably connected to a foot support. A second rocker link is rotatably interconnected between the frame and a discrete portion of the foot support. As the crank rotates, the linkage assembly constrains a cantilevered, rearward portion of the foot support to travel through a generally elliptical path.
In another respect, the present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for linking reciprocal motion to relatively more complex, generally elliptical motion. For example, a handle may be pivotally mounted on the frame and linked to one of the linkage assembly components in such a manner that, as the cantilevered portion of the foot support moves through its generally elliptical path, the handle moves in reciprocal fashion relative to the frame.
In yet another respect, the present invention may be seen to provide a novel linkage assembly and corresponding exercise apparatus suitable for adjusting the elliptical path of motion. For example, at least one of the rocker links may be selectively adjustable relative to the frame to alter the configuration and/or orientation of the foot path. Additional features and/or advantages of the present invention may become more apparent from the more detailed description set forth below.